


A Cold Night and Blood in the Snow

by MinstrelFourtyTwo



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Barely Any Romance, Captain Nico, Civil War AU, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Oneshot interactions, character injury, medic Will
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:13:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25822684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MinstrelFourtyTwo/pseuds/MinstrelFourtyTwo
Summary: During the American Civil War the Greeks and Romans were having their own war. Captain Di Angelo heads a small force on the northern border but has been cut off from camp by their Roman enemies. One night away from freezing to death, something has to be done to keep his men alive.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	A Cold Night and Blood in the Snow

**Author's Note:**

> This is in no way historically accurate, it's just a fic. Also, there's close to zero romance. Just lots of blood and pain. Enjoy!

Breath hung in the air like lingering spirits and Will's boots sank into snow above his laces with each step.  
"Captain," he panted, "what do we do now?"  
It was 1863 and the civil war between the Romans in the south and Greeks in the north was in full swing. And so far, there was no sign of it letting up.  
As a son of Hades, Nico held senior position. He was crouched on the ridged next to Will, his eyes glued to the binoculars. "Tend to the wounded. Get them mobile."  
"But sir," Will's fingers were clammy inside his gloves, "we can't keep this up. I've run out of food and we’re melting snow for water. I have no medical supplies left to ‘get them mobile.’ We have to do something."  
The snow crunched under the ball of Nico’s foot as he swivelled to face the medic. "Did I not make myself clear, Doctor Solace? Get them mobile. We move out in an hour."  
"I hope you know what you're doing." Will's voice dripped with scorn. He marched back down the hill without looking back. At this rate, they would be dead by nightfall. If the Romans didn't get them, the night would.  
As soon as he entered the camp, Will's agitated posture disappeared and his back straightened. With each makeshift bed he passed, the doctor bestowed a touch of healing. Moving a pillow here, adjusting a blanket there, and kneeling down to lift a cup to blue lips.  
The company had been returning from three months spent patrolling every northern outpost this side of the Canadian border, but with little change. The only intruders were small monsters or hyperborean giants, who posed minimal threat. The most excitement Will had seen was fending off a grizzly bear. But as soon as they’d headed back, the enemy had blocked every side. Now, they were trapped the wrong side of the country with little hope of rescue.  
Will found his team and began unpacking the last dregs of medical supplies. "Alright, we have to get these people moving. The captain has a plan."  
"What?!" Kayla, also a child of Apollo, bristled. "How does he plan to get halfway across the country with this lot? We'll die!"  
"Orders are orders, you can make that complaint yourself." Will flexed his gloved fingers, trying to get some warmth back into them before he started work. "Our job is to take care of the wounded, so could you please help me with that?"  
Kayla gritted her teeth but obeyed. Between four medics and several volunteers, Will mobilized the unit; but they weren't going far. 

"It's done, sir," he was stood on the crest with captain Di Angelo again. The snow around them had turned from crisp white to a dull blue as the sun sunk over the horizon.  
The captain straightened and stowed his binoculars. They had been camped on this slope for nearly two days and if the second night of exposure didn't kill them, the enemy would.  
"Doctor," the captain faced Will and the child of Apollo could see dark circles under the officer's eyes, "I am going to need your assistance with one more thing before we go."  
"Of course, only…" Will hesitated. "Sir, we can't go far, my patients need rest and supplies, and if they have too walk far…they won't make it."  
Nico nodded. "I've taken that into account, just listen to me." The captain held Will's attention in the dying light. "When it is dark, I will use the shadows to transport the unit back to camp-"  
Will took a step back. "But sir, you can't! No one has ever made a jump that big; you'll die!"  
"That is what I need your help with, Solace.” Nico's eyes bore into him.” I need you to maintain contact with me until we arrive. Your aura of light will help keep my soul from being sucked into the shadow world."  
"What?" Will's body turned even colder and he shivered.  
"Will," the captain reached out to lay a hand on his medic's shoulder, "I need you to keep my alive during the jump. If I die midway, everyone will be lost."  
"There has to be another way." Will ground his teeth together to stop them chattering. "Maybe there's a search party out for us, or a village close by."  
Nico swept his hand over the dark skyline. "We have Romans less than a day behind us and nothing but rock and ice before us. They've driven us up here for this very reason. To fight would be suicide, and to continue would be madness." He flexed his fingers. "Doctor, I hope you are willing, because it is our only chance. I can make the jump, but only if you help me."  
Will swallowed hard. His body was half frozen from being so far from the campfires and he could barely see the son of Hades in the shadow. Glancing behind them, he could pick out the far-off glow of Roman fires. They did not take prisoners.  
He held out a hand. "I'm with you, sir."  
The captain clasped his hand with his own and the son of Hades faced the son of Apollo. "Thank you, we are relying on you."  
Even in the shelter of the hastily erected camp, the temperature was dropping rapidly. The ragtag unit stood in a circle, with the wounded in the centre, as if performing some cultic ritual. Each soldier clutched another leaving no one unconnected from the ring. In the middle of the group, their captain stood between two wounded with Doctor Solace at his back. Closing his eyes, the demigod summoned the Void.  
As Will felt his organs leave his gut, midway into the jump, fire sprung from nowhere and a gun rang out. Purple banners sailed through the night as fire rained down on the Greek party. Romans had invaded the camp and were firing on them. Soldiers fell even as they were pulled into the darkness and Will's hand on his captain's shoulder felt the demigod's life force flicker.  
As a child, Will had once misjudged the second to last step of a staircase and tumbled down toward the stone kitchen floor. Fortunately, he hadn't been hurt badly but the memory of free falling without any control was one that came to mind now. Feet swept from under him, the medic experienced a moment of panic as he was plunged into darkness.  
Too soon, his feet hit ground and his knees buckled with the impact. Screams rent the night as the wounded fell to the ground. Will picked himself up and ran to a soldier covered in blood and put pressure on the wound in his side.  
"You're alright, just stay still and-" Will cut himself short as he got a proper look at the soldier's face. He was already dead.  
Stumbling back in shock, the medic cast about for the living. All around him, the bodies of fallen demigods littered the grassy hill. He could sense life forces seeping away and ran to the nearest moving soldier. It was a Hermes kid, Cecil Markowitz, and moved him into the recovery position. Behind Will, he could hear Nico yelling orders at the soldiers and the cries turning to moans of pain.  
"Those who can move, tend to the wounded! Be ready for attack! Leave the dead."  
Will could feel himself going into shock and concentrated on breathing. How many had they lost? There was so much blood.  
Someone lit a torch and the light was all Will had to begin salvaging what was left. They had no bandages, no water, and the night stretched out before them. He set his jaw and began using his coat to bandage Cecil. Maybe if they used coats and uniforms, they could save what was left.  
"Solace!"  
Will's head jerked up and he swivelled to find the source of the voice. Captain Di Angelo stood at the top of the hill looking down the other side.  
"Captain?"  
Nico looked up as Will ran to him. "Look down." There was relief on the captain's face.  
In the valley below them, wooden cabins formed an arc and a large house stood to one side with lights still burning in the windows. Will's knees nearly gave out again.  
"Go tell them we're home."  
Will didn't need a second bidding. Dashing down the slope, he put ever last ounce of energy into his aching legs. At the bottom, he ran to a cabin and pounded on the door.  
"Connor! Travis! We're back! Please, we need-" he was interrupted as the door to the Hermes cabin was thrown open and kids poured out. Taking stock of the bedraggled son of Apollo they raced for the hill. Will only had to point dumbly in the direction he had come.  
Like fireflies, Hermes kids darted from one cabin to another, rousing campers and calling the alarm. Lanterns were lit and swords drawn to defend against any marauding monster.  
"Sir, can I get you a blanket?" A Hermes kid jogged Will out of his daze of exhaustion. He was maybe ten and held a blanket out to him. "They want you all up at the Big House's infirmary."  
Will accepted the blanket and let himself be led up to the big house. Within an hour, all that remained of the northern unit were stretched out on hospital beds or draped in blankets around the fire. The stragglers were still being brought in and the dead laid in the cemetery.  
With the sole responsibility of the wounded lifted from his shoulders, Will found the energy to venture out of the big house to find the last of the men.  
Coming down the slope, his head bent as he walked, came Captain Di Angelo. Will rushed to assist him, lending his own shoulder to the wounded soldier Nico was supporting. Together, they half dragged him into the big house and let the medics take him.  
As he let go of the soldier, Will turned to congratulate his captain but the words died in his throat. The captain's face was pale as death and Will could see through his tired features to the wall behind him.  
"Sir," he ventured, "are you-"  
It happened almost in slow motion; Nico took a step forward and his leg gave out, he pitched forward and Will reached out to catch him. His hand passed through the captain's body and the soldier crumpled to the floor.  
"Sir!" Will fell to his knees beside the demigod and placed his hand on him once more, only for it to grasp air. "What is happening?!"  
"Underworld…magic." Nico's breathing was uneven and his eyes were closing. "Need to…sleep."  
"No, no no sir you need to tell me, are you hurt?!"  
Nico glanced down at himself and his hand went to just above his left hip. There was a black stain that seeped out from the spot and down the captain's leg. As he pulled his hand away again, the soldier's fingers were red. Nico held his hand up to his face, examining the blood. He let his hand drop and his eyes closed. "So…tired."  
"No, no no no no." Will tried repeatedly to touch Nico, to put pressure on the injury, but each time his hand went through the captain. Desperate, Will closed his eyes and summoned all his energy. What had Nico told him? That he would need Will's 'aura of light' to keep his soul from being sucked into the underworld. Will concentrated on the light coming from behind his closed eyelids, the fire roaring in the hearth, and the image of the sun beating down on camp half-blood. Balling all these into one, he stretched out his hands once more and willed the light to flow into the son of Hades.  
Warmth. Will's fingers hit warm body and wet blood. He pressed down and felt the form solidify under his fingers. Arteries pumped, breath left body, and life was sucked in again. Nico's chest filled with air and expelled the shadows.  
Will opened his eyes and his captain lay, solid and whole, before him. He nearly wept with relief but the wound in the demigod's side snapped him back into action. He staunched the bullet hole, calling out for help from his siblings. 

When the captain's eyes next opened, he was lying against clean sheets on a proper bed. The experience caused him to close his eyes again immediately, savouring the touch of washed linen and the stillness of his body. Every inch of him ached but he felt blissfully comfortable against the stuffed mattress.  
Too soon, his memory kicked in and he recalled the last night's ordeal. Nico forced himself awake and pushed his body up onto one arm. His eyes scanned the room only to see familiar wood and hear the clatter of Chiron’s hooves on the porch. He was at camp again. He was home.  
His arm gave way and he fell back against the pillow, the goose down crunching under his head. Sunlight hit his arm from a gap in the curtain and the warmth soaked into him. The light cast a yellow pattern over the sheets and Nico realized how much he’d missed the sun. Following the beam’s path with his eyes, Nico found himself staring at a familiar face, asleep in the chair by his bed; it was Will Solace.  
The medic had his head thrown back and his mouth half open. His uniform had been discarded and he was dressed in civilian shirt and breaches, the shirt untucked and too big. It probably belonged to an older boy from his cabin, and he'd be wanting it back as soon as Will could get to his own things. Nico smiled, despite himself, imagining the fussy medic being given hand-me-downs like a child. His gaze drifted to the blond curls, still matted together but none the less flawlessly gold. The medic's eyes were closed and Nico noticed for the first time how long his lashes were, and how Will's freckles had faded almost to nothing since leaving camp. There was only a soft scattering under his eyes.  
The captain tore his eyes away and back to the door as Will snuffled. A coat was draped over the Doctor and, as Will turned over in the chair, it slithered to the floor.  
Without thinking, Nico reached out and grabbed the coat, lifting it with surprising effort. He stretched to drape the garment back over Will and felt something tug at his side. Pain exploded over him and Nico let go of the coat. His hands went to his side and he let out a hissing breath. Pushing the blanket away, Nico could see he'd done something to the wound and tried to sit up. Moisture hit his fingers and they began to shake.  
"Let me do that."  
Nico froze as he heard the voice and felt his hands moved out of the way. Laying back on the bed, Nico felt his teeth begin to chatter. "I'm sorry, I just…" He couldn't seem to finish.  
"It's alright, happens all the time. Just lie still and I'll patch you back up." Will peeled back the covers and his hands began to gently unwind the bandage.  
Nico shivered. He realized he had been stripped to the waist and felt exposed without his shirt. Vulnerable. But he let the son of Apollo work his magic, somewhat literally.  
"Why-" Nico's voice came out uneven and he tried again. "Why am I still injured, shouldn't the ambrosia have, um…"  
"It didn't work on you so well," Will said. "We gave you as much as we could but in the end we had to go old fashioned. Am I hurting you?" He turned startling blue eyes on Nico and the captain was temporarily lost for words. He shook his head dumbly. "Alright." Will gently wiped the blood away from the exit wound and Nico resisted the shiver that passed through him.  
"Shouldn't you be, um, resting?" Nico couldn't take his eyes off his own wound and Will's working hands. It was a kind of spell bound horror.  
Will smiled to himself. "You gave us a fright last night. You nearly disappeared altogether and, well, a promise is a promise."  
"Huh?"  
"I said I'd keep you from fading, didn't I?" Will reached for a basin of water and a cloth. "It was touch and go a couple of times, you kept disappearing in your sleep, but, like you said, my light aura seemed to work."  
"Oh." Nico bit the inside of his mouth as his injury was cleaned. The cloth ran up and down his skin, turning pink with the blood. With each stroke, Nico found it harder and harder to think.  
"All that said, we owe you everything." The medic put his arm under the captain to lift him into a sitting position and began reapplying the bandage.  
Nico stared at his own hands, still stained with grime and blood, and forced himself to relax as Will worked. "What do you mean?"  
"Well," Will shrugged, he was so close Nico could smell the wood smoke that still clung to his hair, "you got us all back."  
"All?" The word sounded hollow even to the captain. "No. We lost so many.' If I had only acted sooner…"  
Will tied off the bandage and sat back to face his captain. He looked him in the eye. "Sir, if it were not for you, we would all be dead."  
Tired eyes stared back at him with no light in them.  
Will reached out to place a hand on Nico's shoulder. "You nearly died to get us here, and now we're safe. We owe our lives to you."  
"The dead," Nico whispered, "I can bury them. They are my responsibility."  
"We will put them to rest tomorrow, everything is being sorted out." Will eased Nico back down onto the mattress, supporting the captain's head back onto the pillow. "If you're good, and rest a lot, you can attend. The ambrosia should at least heal the internal damage. For now, rest."  
Nico nodded and his eyes were already beginning to slide shut. The sun had disappeared behind a cloud and the shadow appeared to lull the captain toward sleep.  
Will got up to leave but stopped when he felt a hand on his wrist.  
The son of Hades loosened his grip immediately and avoided the medic's gaze. "I think I would sleep…better, if you would stay a while."  
Will took Nico's hand and lay it down by his side. Taking his seat again, he produced his book. "Then I can stay. Do you mind if I read?"  
The captain shook his head, pressing his cheek into the pillow. "Perhaps, if you didn't mind, you could even read some aloud?" His fist closed around a handful of sheet.  
Will grinned and opened his book. "Of course, have you read this before? Uncle Tom's Cabin?"  
"I think I saw it in the paper one time. Do the mother and her son get away?"  
Will chuckled and flicked the pages back to section in question. "Let's start from here. ‘Chapter eight, Eliza's escape: Eliza made her desperate retreat across the river just as…" Will's voice slipped into a steady rhythm and Nico's eyes finally slid shut. His breathing evened out and the words soaked into his dreams to tame the nightmares performed behind closed lids.


End file.
